Impulses for Advent: Breathe deeply
Indeed, Christmas will soon be here again! But isn’t this article a little early for Advent? Definitely yes – and on purpose. Because this year, the Advent season is particularly short, as the 4th of Advent coincides with Christmas Eve. This may be a sign of even more perceived stress in the coming days.
That is why we have decided to start the Advent season with you a week earlier and to remind you with our impulses what the original meaning and content of this time should be: a time of silence, reflection and preparation. This year, we are accompanying you with four articles, which we are aligning with topics that seem important to us in this sense: Breathing deeply, serenity, anticipation and courage. We made a conscious decision not to print a calendar with little doors. On the one hand, because we received feedback last year that the printed calendar version did not reach you at all or very late in times of home office work. On the other hand, it is also important to us in these times to only burden our CO2 footprint with things that are unavoidable and effective. We look forward to staying in touch with you next year and wish you a wonderful pre-Christmas period in which you also allow yourself time for reflection.
BREATHING THROUGH
Getting off the task merry-go-round, swimming free in the maelstrom of topics, stopping the mental hamster wheel is not an easy task for many of us in a busy world. Often because it would be factually inappropriate and at the same time because we don’t allow ourselves the need for an interruption or don’t even realize it. Breathless and tense, we race through the day, the weeks, the year. After all, there is always something to do and our focus is on completing our obligations, responsibilities and to-do lists.
So it is not surprising that the idea of idleness and ‘sweet idleness’ does not enjoy the best reputation. Sometimes an external occasion helps, reminding us to ‘take a break’ and ‘take a deep breath’. It is important to allow these moments of rest. They give us the opportunity to gather new energy and refocus our thoughts. They give us the strength to get moving again and move forward with renewed vigor.
Another exciting perspective is that pauses structure and connect time. Similar to pauses between words when speaking or pauses in music, pauses in everyday life serve to link a “before” and “after”. Pauses help to create continuity and help us to consciously experience the transition from one activity to the next. An effect that you should consciously indulge in, especially in the run-up to Christmas – as a valuable moment of transition and reflection.
So consciously take time for breaks in the coming days and devote yourself to your own needs. Because breaks are not a waste of time, but a valuable investment – also in your well-being.
Reflection questions
- How often do you consciously take a break? How do you spend them?
- What stops you from taking a break? How often does this happen to you?
- When would you like to consciously take a break today? And how long should it be?
- How would you like to spend the break? What is good for you?
- Finally, enter the break as an appointment in your calendar and / or set an alarm clock!
Mini breathing exercise
With this exercise, you can bring yourself into a relaxed state in just a few conscious breaths:
- Sit or stand comfortably. Straighten your body – it helps if you imagine that your head is being aligned upwards by an invisible thread. Let your shoulders sink down loosely.
- Breathe in consciously and slowly.
- Hold your breath and count to 4 at a normal pace.
- Breathe out consciously and count to 7 at a normal pace.
- Repeat this up to 4 times. This exercise also calms your heartbeat, for example.
Break moments
As a team, we asked ourselves: How do we actually take breaks? What do breaks mean to us? And because we as a ‘remote company’ rarely see how individuals deal with these short breaks, the result of the survey was once again a moment to get to know each other even better. But see for yourself: This is what break moments at Movendos look like.
Movendo-Playlist – Breathe deeply
We have put together a Movendo playlist on Spotify for your relaxing break moments.
